1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a new elasticized artificial leather and a process for its production.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The problem of producing artificial leathers capable of substituting for natural leather has been felt in the state of the art for a long time. A number of products have been produced from synthetic materials with the object of obtaining products of lower cost than natural leather, but which at the same time maintain unchanged the look and feel of natural leather itself. For example, it is possible to mention a poromer produced from a web of polyesters coated with polyurethane and known by the trade name of Corfam, produced by Du Pont, which is employed as an artificial leather for various uses. In particular all the synthetic leathers produced up to now have shown insufficient modellability, for example in the production of articles of clothing such as shoes or other products. Furthermore, the state of the art shows no artificial leathers having structural elasticity, that is to say the ability to stretch under traction, with immediate return to their original size.
There was therefore a need in the state of the art for leathers that, although produced from synthetic materials, showed a modellability of finished products similar to that of natural leather, with at the same time the same look and "feel" of natural leather and furthermore a high level of elasticity.
It has now surprisingly been found that an artificial leather made from a woven material, in which at least the threads of the weft are made of an elastomeric fiber, makes it possible to obtain a product which, as well as looking exceptionally like natural leather from an aesthetic point of view, is more modellable than the artificial leathers known from the prior art, and has a much greater elasticity than that of natural leathers.